No Pesticide - Pest Prevention Gardening Hints

Window box at bedroom window

Nicotiana, pansies and alyssum (annuals)

Nicotiana "Flowering Tobacco"

Lovely, summer annuals. Fertile, well-drained soil. Sun or shade. Makes an impressive statement in the garden! They will bloom reliably all summer, until frost and their fragrance will fill the garden, generously lending its sweetness to nearby unscented annuals. Hummingbirds, butterflies, and humans all love the fragrant, star-shaped flowers of this old-time favorite.

Perennial Salvia - 'Eveline' - Meadow Sage

Two toned - light pink and purple. Blooms in early summer - height 25'' - likes full sun. An improved perennial Salvia with two toned pink and violet flowers. Zones 4-9. Very heavy flowering. Selected for its unique flowers and it is upright and compact - attracts hummingbirds and butterflies.

*****

No Pesticide Pest Prevention Gardening Hints

Interplant Flowers and Herbs for a Chemical Free Organic Garden that Reduces Insects

NICOTINA: (pictured above)is also known as flowering tobacco and will be useful in keeping the pests away from not the garden, but the gardener. These plants repel mosquitoes, so if your work schedule forces you to garden at dusk, these will help keep pesky mosquitoes at bay. Nicotina, which can be grown in sun or shade, has strongly fragranced flowers that attract butterflies and hummingbirds. Note- ALL parts of the nicotina plant are poisonous, and should not be used if you have small children, just as a precaution. You have to actually eat the plant for it to be dangerous.

THE MINT FAMILY: helps to keep the bugs away. With wonderful, aromatic varieties to choose from, the mint family offers textured, interesting leaves, pleasant, yet bug reducing aroma, plus having many uses for the leaves in your cooking and summer drinks. You can trim the mints as often as you please, as they will continue to grow all summer. They are also great container companions for patio tomatoes. Mint should be grown in containers near other plants to prevent spreading. You’ll find mint everywhere in a few years, perhaps even in your lawn, if you don’t use them in pots. Plant mint in a clay pot and tuck it among the other plants.

Some vegetables will help control pests too. GARLIC: offends Japanese beetles, vegetable weevils and spider mites. CELERY: deters the white moth that lays the eggs that become caterpillars, and then eat your cabbage and broccoli.

Certain flowers discourage insects that like to munch. Easy-to-grow MARIGOLDS: with their strong scent, are a great deterrent to damaging pests. Plant marigold near vegetables like tomatoes, and bugs will go elsewhere- the marigold scent overpowers the scent of the tomatoes, creating a sort of nasal blindfold, and thwarting harmful pests from sniffing out your tomatoes. An additional bonus is that inter-planted beds are more resistant to drought than conventionally planted gardens.

NASTURTIUMS: repel whiteflies and squash bugs. Perhaps nasturtiums will protect your sage from the whiteflies if you plant some nearby.

In addition, some of the herbs and flowers that deter the pests will encourage the beneficial insects that plants need to thrive and pollinate. Your garden will have a pleasing, natural look.